The Effect of Temperature Waves on the Zonal Mean Ozone Content

Abstract

The strong negative correlation between ozone,n3 and temperature, T is a well-known fact in the upper stratosphere. When we take into consideration this correlation in our formulation of the ozone variation, the term $$ T'{{n'}_{3}} $$ in the photochemical loss rate of the zonal mean ozone can be derived, being proportional to $$ - {{n'}_{3}}^{2} $$ . Since this term is always negative, it can be concluded that the zonal mean ozone concentration at photochemical equilibrium is higher with the effect of temperature waves than that without the effect as in previous studies. This effect is evaluated to find that a 20 % enhancement in the zonal mean ozone concentration can be brought about by temperature wave of 15°K amplitude; such an amplitude is often observed in the winter upper stratosphere. Therefore, temperature waves can play an important role on the ozone variations, especially during the period of sudden stratospheric warmings when planetary waves could accompany larger amplitude temperature waves.